5 tips to improve IVF success

Eating avocados and foods high in monounsaturated fat can triple the success of your in vitro fertilisation (IVF) treatment. But is there anything else you can do to improve your IVF success?

A new study carried out by researchers at the Harvard School of Public Health found that eating monounsaturated fat – found in olive oil, sunflower oil, nuts and seeds – could help women trying to have a baby through in vitro fertilisation (IVF). It’s believed that these “good fats” – which are already known to protect the heart – could improve fertility by lowering inflammation in the body.

In contrast the research revealed that women who ate a diet rich in saturated fat (found in red meat and butter) produced fewer healthy eggs for use in fertility treatment. Another study showed that drinking five or more cups of coffee a day halved the chance of successful IVF treatment.

Dr Ulrik Schixler Kesmodel, from the Fertility Clinic of Aarhus University Hospital in Denmark, said: “Although we were not surprised that coffee consumption appears to affect pregnancy rates in IVF, we were surprised at the magnitude of the effect.”

But along with eating a healthy diet, what else can you do to improve your chances of conceiving under IVF? Tertia Albertyn, Owner of Nurture Egg Donor and Surrogacy Program, provided the following tips:

5 tips to improve your IVF success

1. Make sure you are at the best fertility clinic for your needs. “Best” can be defined in many ways – highest success rate, best bedside manner, most value for money. You are making an enormous financial and emotional investment, so make sure your expectations are met.

2. Make sure your expectiations are realistic. If you are 45 years old and you are using your own eggs, your chance of success is probably only around 5%. Your chance of having a baby through donor eggs is around 65%. If you only have the resources for one attempt, make sure you maximise your odds.

3. Prepare yourself emotionally. Know that IVF takes a huge toll emotionally; be prepared for the roller-coaster ride. You will feel so many emotions at once: hope / fear / excitement / terror. Have someone to support you through the process. Go online and join a fertility support forum, it can be done anonymously if you are keeping it private and confidential. Don’t be ashamed to seek professional support if you need it.

4. Prepare yourself physically. Stop smoking, cut down on the wine. Eat well. Drink water. Stick to one cup of coffee a day. Don’t eat fatty foods. Step away from the cheese cake, burgers and fries. But don’t punish yourself, have that glass of wine on a Friday night. Enjoy that rare cappuccino. Infertility is hard enough without denying yourself the occasional indulgence.

5. Go alternative: Just because you are doing something high tech / traditional medicine, doesn’t mean you can’t use alternative approaches to maximise your chances. Investigate things like fertility acupuncture, fertility reflexology or fertility astrology. Make sure you go to someone reputable who has experience in this area. Always check with your doctor first.

Lastly, always have a Plan B, said Albertyn. “Having a Plan B (another IVF / another option like donor eggs) kept me sane. If this one doesn’t work, then we will do XYZ or try ABC. Knowing that this wasn’t the end of the road made the failures more tolerable for me,” she said.